Worksop: Community cafe gets funding grant

A community cafe which deals with the impact of poverty and poor health in Bassetlaw is celebrating after a securing a funding boost.

Bread and Roses CIC, has a received a Truly Scrumptious grant of £8,290, which will allow the business to extend its services.

The cash, which was awarded by the Coalfields Community Grant programme, will contribute towards the salaries of a part-time lead worker and two part-time support workers, while also being used to trial a Fareshare membership.

Director of Bread and Roses, Steve Ralf, said: “Every day we meet with an increasing number of local people who are in need of help and support.”

“The café brings the community together and offers good quality food at reasonable prices but we were aware that we needed to do more.”

The money will help the cafe launch an outreach programme - which will enable employees to work with disadvantaged people in Worksop.

Steve added: “Teaching them how to make the most of what they have could be the difference between them having a healthy diet and nothing at all but better still we can extend their skills, which could be invaluable.”

Head of operations for the Coalfields Regeneration Trust, Andy Lock, told the Guardian that food poverty is a growing and real issue for thousands of people.

“With our help organisations like Bread and Roses can have a real and lasting difference to people in coalfield communities,” he said.

“The recession had a damaging and disproportionate effect on coalfield communities.”

“It is only with the help of partnerships in each area that we can start to address the problems with deprivation, ill health and unemployment. We cannot simply turn our backs on 5.5m people.”